The Cum. LSDAS GPA is what schools report to USNWR and impacts rankings. So this is the one they care most about. This is not to say that your degree GPA or degree granting institution GPA or a strong upward trend or anything like that will be completely discounted. It's a soft that varies in importance, but if well explained could allow you to outperform your Cum. LSDAS GPA.

Mr. Somebody wrote:^ Is that true? I wonder how that affects people with no cumulative, I only have a degree GPA.

I don't know. I have more than one school on my report, so the cumulative takes them all into account. If you only have one UG institution then the cumulative GPA and the degree GPA would be the same. My cumulative is right at a 3.0, whereas my degree is >4.0.